Magnificent Surrender

Book excerpt: "God's kingdom is our true home, but we've picked up a habit of resisting it. And when, finally, we do fall in, most of us find we've survived so long outside his kingdom that we've lost all instinct for thriving in it. That's where Roger Helland meets us. Roger has thought long and studied hard on these matters. He has pondered deeply what it means to be fully alive in Christ and for Christ, and he's tested his insights in classrooms, in churches, with denominations, but mostly in his own life. In Magnificent Surrender, he's distilled what he's learned into a field guide for kingdom living. But Roger draws from an even deeper source. His book derives its force and depth from Paul's letter to the Colossians. Indeed, Magnificent Surrender is an extended pastoral reflection on and application of that letter. Colossians, in four brief chapters, presents the glory of Jesus Christ and the glory of a life wholly submitted to him. It is a manifesto of the rich life. Magnificent Surrender heralds that brilliantly. It's a wise, loving, and sometimes stern invitation to read Colossians again, with fresh eyes and fierce resolve. It's also a challenge to take to heart its promise and its exhortation--that we can and must live in, through, with, and for Christ, who is all and in all, supreme and sufficient." -Mark Buchanan, from the Foreword